


Blue Butterflies

by hernamewasalice



Series: Fluff + Angst [7]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Adopted Rey (Star Wars), Age Difference, Alternate Universe - Flower Shop, Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Reincarnation, F/M, Flowers, Fluff, Inspired by Romeo and Juliet, Modern Era, Older Man/Younger Woman, Reincarnation
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-07
Updated: 2020-06-20
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:21:00
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,456
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23525278
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hernamewasalice/pseuds/hernamewasalice
Summary: Ben will never forget the first time Rey came into his flower shop, with blue butterflies in her hair.
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey & Ben Solo, Rey & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Series: Fluff + Angst [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1622881
Comments: 89
Kudos: 196





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> idk what I made.

Every year, Mr. Solo gives Rey flowers for her birthday.

They were never bouquets, no Mr. Solo didn't like that. He always gave her potted plants. He owned a flower shop and always gave her plants that will last long. He'll never give her cut flowers that are meant to last a few weeks. She has a green thumb because of him, has a collection of succulents in her house and roses and peonies.

Rey has known him since she was five years old. Her foster father Unkar owned a pawn shop next door. Rey was an energetic child and Unkar didn't always have the best patience with her. Rey ended up spending most of her days at Mr. Solo's flower shop. She was always drawn to the flower shop. It was so warm and inviting and so colorful too. And Mr. Solo always had music playing.

And he has the cutest black cat named Nadine. 

Mr. Solo was kind too. He never asked her to leave. He was never short tempered like Unkar. Mr. Solo always made her feel welcomed. He always have food waiting for her too.

Sometimes Unkar forgets to feed her.

Unkar doesn't mind that she spends most of her time at the flower shop as long as she finished her chores and homework first. Sometimes, Rey wouldn't be able to finish her homework on the account she didn't know how to do it and so Mr. Solo would help her. When Rey's alone with Mr. Solo, she sometimes calls him Ben.

Unkar doesn't like hearing her refer Mr. Solo by his first name. Unkar reminds her that Mr. Solo isn't a friend but an adult and should be treated with the upmost respect. Rey thinks that Ben is her favorite person. She likes helping him around in his shop. He never lets her do much, only water the plants and sweep.

"Rey," Unkar calls her, grunting. He's standing in front of the entrance of the flower shop, doesn't bother with entering to retrieve her.

Her face dejects at the familiar voice. She clings on to Nadine and nuzzled her face into the cat's soft fur. "I don't want to go," she whined.

Ben smiled at her gently. He pets her hair the way he does with Nadine. "I know you don't. I don't like it either."

"Come on, it's late little girl," Unkar spits out. He's scratching his stomach and spitting on the concrete.

Ben went on one knee to meet her eyes. "Come on, it's time for you to go," he tells the eight year old girl. "We always have tomorrow."

Rey pouted and shook her head. "I want to stay!" she cried out.

He frowned. "I want you to stay too."

Unkar grumbled and marches inside and snatches Rey by the elbow. The aggressiveness of his action takes her by surprise that she drops Nadine. Nadine lands on her feet and hisses at him. Nadine doesn't like Unkar. Rey's crying and Unkar just puts her over his shoulder to shut her up. "Thanks," Unkar said in anything but a sincere tone.

Ben paints a smile. "It's not a problem." His smile fades as he sees how Unkar is handling her. He's really rough with her, as if she was some animal. "You should really get a sitter for her. I feel bad having her cooped up at both shops."

"I don't have anyone to watch her!" Unkar spats out. He's annoyed and rightfully so for someone telling him how to parent. "And I can't afford to get a sitter. And I can't exactly have a day off but I have things in my shop to keep her entertained but kids will be kids. You will know that if you had one," he sneered. "If you want I can forbid her from coming to your store and being an inconvenience."

"No," Ben said quickly. "I don't mind at all."

Unkar gave Ben a look before leaving.

Ben proceeded to water the rest of the plants. Nadine helps by closing the door and hoping on the table to turn the sign over to close with her tail. Nadine jumps down and follows Ben. Ben hums to himself over the background music.

"I think it's her," Nadine says out loud in the privacy of the store.

He smiles at his cat as he continued to water the rest of the plants. Subconsciously he rubbed the blue stone on his ring. "I know it is. The first time she came here, blue butterflies were in her hair."

"I remember, I was there," Nadine reminded her master. "It's just I was surprised at how young she was."

Ben smiled bitterly. "Tell me about it."

"So what now?"

Ben stood still for a moment and stared at his ring. He sighed and closed his eyes. "We wait," he frowned. He went back and remained focus on tending to the plants. Rey was far too young. He will have to wait until she was old enough to take her.

His cat made a face. "I know that but what are we going to do about Unkar Pluttt? He's not capable of raising her. I'm pretty sure she got bruises from him last week." Nadine whimpered then. She didn't like seeing Rey get hurt. Rey was only a child and already knew how to hide and lie about being abused.

"I know he isn't." His jaw twitched as his body tensed. His fingers squeezed at the metal watering can and bending it to an entirely different shape.

Nadine meowed, trying to pull back his mood. "We can kill him," she offered that idea.

He laughed then. "We can't kill him."

"You can though," his pet chimed.

"It's tempting, but I don't want her to be sent away. You have to think things through, Nadine."

"You can adopt her."

"It's not that simple, cat. It's a long tedious process and Rey will not like it if I killed him."

"She doesn't have to know," the cat countered then. "Besides she will probably forget about him in a week or so. Unkar is a pitiful waste of a human. I've never seen a human so grotesque as him before."

Ben smirked. He set aside the watering can and scooped Nadine into his arms. "Devious cat," he said as he petted her.

"As devious as her master," Nadine purred.


	2. Chapter 2

Rey loves visiting Mr. Solo.

He always had food and stories for her. Today he has Pad Thai and a can of soda waiting for her for when she came to him after school. Business was slow today since it was Monday. Nadine is resting on top of the table on her side. Rey beamed at the lazy cat and kissed the cat on the head. "Hi girl!" she smiled.

Nadine meowed in delight. Nadine loves Rey.

Rey giggled. She reaches into the pocket of her backpack. "Do you want some food?"

"No. Don't feed her, she's getting fat," Ben said quickly.

Nadine hissed at Ben without any hesitation.

"Bad kitty," Ben said in a firm tone. He doesn't hide his smirk at the cat.

"Hi Ben," Rey greeted him then.

"Hello," his tone shifts completely. He pushes the food to Rey.

She thanks him and digs in.

"Slow down little one," he chuckled.

Rey wiped her mouth with her hand and blushed. "Sorry."

He suppressed his sigh. "I know you love Nadine but you also have to eat," he tells her gently. Rey's been saving half of her food for Nadine. Ben keeps telling her not to but Rey was only a child and a sweet one for that matter. She was more concerned about taking care of Nadine than her own well being. "It's my job to make sure she's fed. So you don't have to worry about it." Ben felt his jaw twitch. It was Unkar's job to make sure Rey was fed but he can't even get that right. Any parent would be concerned that their child was spending all of their time with an older man.

"But Nadine likes it when I feed her!" Rey explained.

Ben gave Nadine a dirty look. Spoiled cat. "Nadine loves everything you do for her." Rey settles down and focuses on how good the food is. He ordered her extra chicken in it too. Ben laughed as he squeezed a lime into her noodles.

"Did you finish the drawings for your story yet?" she asked, taking a sip of her Sprite.

He nodded. "Give me a second." He lays out only one drawing.

Rey leaned and examined it. Her eyes are large in awe. "You're such a great artist!"

This was true, Ben was an artist.

Nadine snuggled close to her master then and purred in agreement with Rey.

Rey wiped her hands down on her jeans and carefully held the drawing to her face. It was a watercolor painting of the princess in his story. She had long flowy brown hair and large green eyes. She was dressed in a long flowing velvet burgundy dress with slashed paneled sleeves to reveal the white she wore underneath. The dress was lovely with a full skirt, with jewels and pearls adorned everywhere. "She really is pretty like you said she was," Rey said. She brings the drawing closer to her face and studied the image of the young maiden. Her eyebrows knitted at the features of the princess. "She sort of looks like me."

Ben smiled at her in endearment. "That's because all princesses look like you." He doesn't hide the fondness in his tone for it was beyond him. He touches his blue ring out of second nature as he watches her eyes flicker in recognition to the drawing. He hovers her and wait for her next response.

Rey becomes distracted by her food and sets the drawing down.

Ben couldn't help but to frown. It's only for a brief moment that it registers to her but she's still too young. Her mind can't fully process complex things. A part of him breaks every time. It's like having a loved one with Alzheimer's. You still have hope that they will remember even though you know they can't. He swallowed the lump in his throat. Nadine frowned as well. "Do you want me to tell you more of the story?"

She nodded eagerly. "I want to know more about Kira."

* * *

_Not even a castle with a thousand rooms could not keep her safe from him. She always tries to hide but he always finds her. She remains still behind the curtain even though she could see his feet. She was too frozen in fear to move, afraid of what he will do._

_There's silence._

_Sometimes the quietness is worse than his laughter. Kira's heart was beating. He will strike her like he always does because she always disobeyed. "Kira," he calls out her name calmly. She went numb. He was putting on a façade again of a man that could do no harm. Nothing good ever came from this._

_Kira blinked slowly, trying to register that he was speaking to her. She only talks when spoken to. "Yes, grandfather?" she kept her tone even. Poised. She shifted her gaze from his feet and turned to face the window. The only thing separating them was the curtain. He could not see her but he didn't need to. Her emotions were always transparent._

_"Tell me," King Palpatine began slowly. "Did he, bestow on you some sign of love?"_

_Kira held her breath. "No," she said without any emotion._

_"You lie to me granddaughter?"_

_Kira trembled from the sound of his voice. She can hear him frown and his face twisting into the terrifying form. "Yes," she said weakly. Kira shut her eyes from tears escaping her._

_"He is not one of us."_

_"I know," she whispered._

_"He is our enemy."_

_"I know," she said again. She bit on her lip to stop herself from crying like a child._

_"I don't think you understand," King Palpatine's voice went cold._

_Kira nodded through her tears. She doesn't want to._

* * *

Rey hugged her legs. She's listening intently with large eyes. "What happens then?"

Ben sees Unkar through the glass window. "I'll tell you next time."

She frowned. "But I want to know the rest of the story!"

"I know you do but Unkar is here. We have until tomorrow."

Rey was about to protest until she sees Unkar's frown. She went pale.

Ben forced himself not to think what will happen to her when she gets home.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Rey said in a soft low tone. "Thank you."

Nadine lowered her head on the table and whimpered. Ben grabbed Nadine in his arms and petted her helplessly. "You should really kill him," Nadine said.

"You know we can't."

"We have to think of something. We can't let her get abused until she's eighteen."

* * *

_Even in darkness, he is bright. He is hope._

_"I promise to this life and all the other lives I shall live that I will no longer be a Palpatine," she announces not just to him but to the whole world. Her whole being. Her legacy. Kira didn't want to bring pain and suffering. "I shall be no one. I shall be nothing for the rest of my days."_

_Ben looks up at her in bewilderment. He touches her cheek and shakes his head softly. "You will never be nothing. Not to me."_

_He wipes the tears from her eyes and kisses her forehead. "What am I to you?"_

_"You are the light that guides me back home. You are a ray of sunshine."_

_Kira smiled at the thought. "Then that's what I'll be for the rest of my days."_

_Ben kisses her then. "And that you will always be."_


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> some fluff for this time.

The flower shop was full of drear and sadness.

It was raining and the silence was consuming Nadine. She hops on the table to comfort her master. She tries to snuggle up with him but he's lifeless. His eyes are staring at the clock. Rey should have been here a while ago. Something had happened to her.

"What can I do to make you happy?" Nadine frowned. She hates seeing her master like this. He's been sad before, had spent centuries being alone without Rey but this current state he was in was different. It was more intense, as if Rey had died again. The clouds were dark and gray but Ben was in a much darker state.

Ben forced himself to smile but couldn't. He pets Nadine to show his gratefulness in his companion. "There is nothing you can do. It's what I have to do," he sighed.

Nadine frowned and whimpered. "Why must you?"

"Because I love her and I want the best for her." Ben has spent a much longer time away from Rey before finding her again. He reminds himself this over and over again. He had spent a hundred lifetimes looking for her, he can handle being away from her until she was old enough. Rey wasn't safe being under the care of Unkar Plutt and Ben knows he has to call child protective services. "It'll only be ten years and then I can be with her."

"We can still kill Unkar and take Rey in. No one will ever know."

He chuckled at the mischievous cat. "This world has different rules, cat."

Nadine made a face. "You were a prince and she was a princess. Why must this world still keep you apart by age?"

Ben blinked and thought about it for a moment. He exhaled. "I don't know, it's best not to question things. Everything happens for a reason and I hope that this world will work in my favor."

"You are not the violent angry man you once were. You finally live up to the title of a prince."

He picks up Nadine into his arms. He observes his orchid on the table. "The plants have taught me well. She has taught me well."

"Of course she has and now it's your turn to teach her."

* * *

_They knew how this would end, or at least Ben thought he did._

_He expected to be lying on the floor breathing his last breath but it was her that was. Rey was dying. He scrambles to climb out of the ditch. He's weak, he's injured and yet none of it mattered. He just want to go to her. He just wants her. He's limping and he's bleeding from his wounds but he doesn't care. None of it mattered. The only thing that mattered was her._

_Ben tries to speak but nothing comes out. Fear and grief take over him and he whispers nothing. Panic surges all over to a point he can't think. She's laying on the ground. Her eyes are closed. She's battered and covered in a pool of her own blood. He gently touches her, afraid to accidentally paralyze her. He uses all his strength to muster her name. To call out her name as if a hymn._

_She barely opens her eyes. His heart skipped a beat. It was difficult for her to have her eyes fully open. The way she was looking at him was making him panic. She didn't seem afraid but at peace. He frowned. He can see it on her face. She was going to die and she was accepting it._

_Ben shakes his head at her. "You're going to be okay. Please don't go."_

_Rey smiles at him slightly. "It's okay," she whispered._

_He shakes his head again. "No. No."_

_"It's okay Ben," she smiles again. He can feel it, how excruciating it was for her to make the slightest of movements. Rey keeps up with her calm façade but he can see right through it. She shuts her eyes and exhaled. "Remember what I told you?"_

_He winces through his pain and cradles her in his arms. He strokes her hair and she smiles at him lovingly. He forced himself to nod. He does. "Of course I do," his voice broke. She was such a sweet girl with a dreamy mind. She was one with nature and one with the earth._

_"If I should ever die, I'll come back," she repeats her thought again. "I'll come back with blue butterflies in my hair."_

_"You mean adornments?" he asked once more. He knows the answer but wants to hear her voice for the last time._

_"No," she chuckled. "I'll have real blue butterflies with me and they would lead me back to you."_

_Ben blinked away his tears. "I will spend all of my lives looking for you."_

_Rey smiles one last time as all the life left in her body went away._

_He went still._

_He presses her close to his body and searches for a pulse._

_He mumbles out words but his mind was unable to process anything from the shock he was experiencing. She was dead. He shakes her but there was no response. He shakes her again._

_Nothing._

* * *

Ben waits until Rey comes back again before calling child protective services. She doesn't came back until a week later with a cast on her arm. His skin tightened at the sight. Nadine rushes to Rey and rubs her fur on Rey's leg. "What happened?" he asked her. He grazes his fingers over her cast. She winces from the slight touch. Unkar really hurt her. Unkar should be dead.

"It's nothing," Rey said quickly with a smile.

She always hid her emotions even in this life. He shakes his head at her. "Unkar did that to you, didn't he?"

"No," she responds back in an even tone. She says it with a straight face, her gaze focused on him. She can fool anyone but him.

He bit his lip to contain his anger. "You're lying to me. I always know when you lie." He reaches for his cellphone.

"Please don't!" she begged. "I don't want to be sent away. It was my fault I angered him. I-I-

"There's nothing that you can ever do to deserve this," he tells her. He paused as he realizes that this will be the last time he's going to see her until she was of age. He puts his phone away and hugs her tight. Ben doesn't want to let go of her but he has to. He wants to be there for her and protect her as she grew but he doesn't want to risk the chance of ruining how she sees him. He doesn't want to be a parental figure to her. He doesn't want scar her that way. They were soulmates and he doesn't want to ever sever that bond. "It's going to be okay," he tells her gently.

"I don't want to leave," she sobbed.

Ben frowned. "I don't want you to leave either but I want you to be safe."

Nadine whimpers in the background.

"We will find each other again," he tells her as he pulled away. He wipes her tears from her eyes. "I promise."

"I want to be with you."

"I want you to be with me too," he chuckled softly at the little girl. "But I don't think I'm capable of that." He wants Rey to have a normal upbringing. He doesn't want to raise his lover. It will be damaging for the both of them. He wants her to enjoy life before they were meant to be together again. "Do you have a piece of paper in your backpack?"

Rey laughed. "Of course I do, silly," she sniffled.

Ben chuckled. "Well go get a piece out. When you graduate high school, I want you to visit me. I want you to remember this address."

She nodded. "I promise I'll visit you."

He tried not to look sad but it was hard not to. He never expected having to let her go for the second time. It doesn't help that Rey was crying. She's young and she doesn't remember anything of their past. It breaks his heart. He hugs her one last time before he called child protective service.

"I promise I'll come back," she vowed. "I won't ever forget you."

"I won't ever forget you either."


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A short chapter but needed

The prince waits.

He's done this a hundred lifetimes and he'll do it over and over again for a chance to cross paths with her. This world was different, he was much older than her, by twenty three years. Their first life, he was only older than her by a decade. Ben couldn't do anything until she came back to him - if she came back. He considered giving her Nadine but he knows there was a strong chance that the adults and homes in Rey's life wouldn't allow pets. He had to think of Nadine's well being. He didn't want Nadine to be passed around or worse, ended up a stray.

It was only ten years - he would be forty though and Rey would be eighteen. He's not sure if he could woo her. Besides the age difference, she sees him as an older brother figure, perhaps even as a father. Ben doesn't know how things will go in this life but it's the most he's lived in the past hundred lifetimes.

To know that Rey existed in this world alongside with him was more than enough.

* * *

Everything was quiet now without her.

Everything was mundane and bleak.

Unkar stops by ever so often to intimidate him. Ben couldn't help but to feel guilty. He can see in the miserable man's face that he missed her too. Unkar wasn't a good man but he cared for her as much as his cold heart allowed. "You can threaten me all you want," Ben began, keeping his composure from killing the man. "But it wouldn't benefit you at all," his tone was calm as ever. Ben's trimming the plants, focusing on them opposed to the sad man. "She's gone and you can't get her back. And if you hurt me, your life will be over."

Unkar glared at him and curses out loud. "You're lucky you're still alive."

Ben cuts off a thorn. He looks at Unkar's reflection in the scissors. "Same to you."

* * *

"Why do you own a flower shop?" Nadine asks.

She always asks this. It was a ritual of theirs on every eve of a new year.

Ben pets Nadine. Most people went out for new year's eve but instead he stays inside his apartment with his cat. It's not even close to midnight but they see fireworks everywhere at their fire escape. "Because Rey loves flowers. She loves nature and believes everyone should be around it."

"Why does she believe everyone should be around nature?"

"She believes you grow with nature. That there are lessons that nature teaches you."

"Do you agree with that belief?"

Ben settles Nadine next to her and proceeds to pour himself a glass of wine. He searches the night sky for stars but they're hidden by all the lights. He couldn't help but to frown. He misses the way things were before all this human interference. "I do," he answers then. "I used to be a much different man. A very angry man. Nature has taught me to be patient and forgiving."

Nadine smiles. "I can't believe it's been a year since she's gone."

"Yeah. I can't either." It felt so much longer than that. Time went by slowly without her.

"I'm happy that you didn't give me to Rey."

He raised his eyebrow at the cat. "Oh? Why is that?"

"So you won't be as lonely."

* * *

"How did you meet the princess?"

"I met her in a field while I was scanning the area with my men a few days before attacking her kingdom."

Nadine made a face. She hopped down the high shelf and onto the ground. "That's not romantic."

Ben chuckled. He was sweeping the floor in the flower shop. Nadine followed him. "Our kingdoms were at war, there was no room for love."

"But you made room," Nadine reminded him. Her eyes were bright, mischievous and all.

"I suppose I did."

"Did you know who she was?"

"Yes," he said without a second thought. "Instantly. She didn't wear a crown that day. No jewels. No lavish clothing. But I knew she was a princess by how much joy she carried with herself. She was the most beautiful woman I ever seen."

* * *

And that was how the prince and the cat passed the time.

They would tell stories to one another and have music playing in the shop always. They created little things to look forward to in between the ten years until the princess came back.

"I hope she comes back," Nadine sighed.

"I hope so too."


	5. Chapter 5

Nadine was sleeping while Ben was taking care of some customers.

It was a busy day and thankfully since she's a cat, she doesn't have to work. She can just sunbathe in front of the store. She yawned and stretched her body before rolling to her other side. It was a nice and warm today, sunny too. Light glimmers in her direction. The cat whined from the brightness.

She twitched her nose as she felt something land on her.

Most likely it was a leaf. The trees have been shedding due to the turn of the new season.

She shakes her nose but the leaf stayed there. The cat opened her eyes to find a blue butterfly on her. Nadine sat up and yelped. What? Could this be? Blue butterflies weren't even native in this city.

There was a girl standing there on her phone. She was a pretty girl, tall (well as a cat everyone was tall to her) with a willowy, slender frame and long brown hair. She had gentle features - light freckles, soft full lips, and long lashes. The girl seemed lost and appeared to be checking the address. She doesn't seem to notice the fact that there were blue butterflies resting in her hair.

Nadine perked up as she tilted her head. Could this be? The girl seemed awfully familiar to Nadine but she wasn't a girl. This was a woman as told by the curves to her body and prominent cheekbones and jawline. She was wearing a floral dress and light blue hoodie and white adidas shoes. Nadine smirked. She knows her master will definitely be distracted by Rey's bare legs.

Nadine meowed at the girl to get her attention.

The girl looked down. Nadine puffed out her chest to show off her collar to the human girl. Rey paused for a moment before her eyes widened in recognition. "Hello pretty kitty," the girl greeted her, smiling from cheek to cheek. Her smile was bright as ever, perhaps even brighter.

Nadine meowed again. Rey. Oh how she missed Rey and her warm hugs. Nadine rubbed her fur against Rey's leg, begging to be held. The princess does so and gathered the cat in her arms. Nadine nuzzled the girl's arm and inhaled her scent. She missed the smell of Rey very much. Rey always smelled sweet and nothing like Ben who smelled like a man. The princess put the cat down. Nadine posed as Rey began to take pictures of her.

Nadine couldn't help but to awe at the sight of the woman with blue butterflies in her hair. Nadine wondered if Rey was aware of them. Rey's hair had gotten long and wavy and silky - such a beautiful woman. Nadine ran into the store first. She ran past the humans and hopped on to the counter to gather her master's attention.

Master ignored her.

Nadine hissed and tilted her head to the back.

Ben frowned at the customer. "I'm sorry give me a moment. I think she's hungry."

"No worries," said the customer.

Ben follows Nadine into the back. "What is it girl?" he asked. "What's going on?"

"Rey!" Nadine exclaimed, relieved to finally speak. It took so much out of the cat not to speak in front of Rey. She wants to speak to Rey but when the time was right - which should be after Rey and Ben fall in love. "She's here!" she hummed.

Ben blinked. "What? Are you sure?"

"Yes!" Nadine grinned. "There's blue butterflies hovering her. A butterfly kissed me even! And she's so pretty too. You never told me how pretty she was. She's in front of the shop. I think she's waiting for you to respond to her text before entering. I think she sees how busy it is and doesn't want to come at a bad time."

Ben was frozen. There's no expression on his face. It made Nadine confused because he should be happy and jumping around.

"Come on, go answer your phone or better yet go out to talk to her!" Nadine whined.

He doesn't seem convinced. "Are you sure it's her?"

Nadine rolled her eyes. Stupid master. "Yes I'm sure. She's finally here and she's way too pretty for you. I don't know how you won her heart but we'll talk about that later. Come on, _go_!"

"I don't think it's her - she would have texted me or something -

"Maybe she wanted to surprise you, stupid," she said trying to put some logic.

"It's certainly a surprise since we haven't seen each other or spoke since she was eight."

"Yes because if you did you would have gotten in trouble with the police since she wasn't eighteen. Maybe she lost your number after a decade and managed to track the address. Come on, dummy. Don't just stand there like a statue! Go and do something!" Nadine nudged her master's leg to move but the stupid human remained still. Nadine sighed. "What are you doing? Are you having cold feet or something?"

"...No."

Nadine saw right through the human. She forgets how simple humans were, always overthinking over the simplest of things. "Everything's going to be okay!" she coaxed. "She's here - come on you've been searching for her for a hundred life times. You can worry about the other things later. Go on and talk to her. It's only natural to be nervous."

"I'm not nervous!" Ben scowled at the cat.

Nadine gave him a look. "Just what then?"

"I have customers to attend to -

"Well you're wasting more of their time and her time talking to a cat," Nadine countered. She scratched him then, right at the ankle.

Ben and Nadine went out then with a line waiting for him. He continued to help the customer and ever so often scanned to look for the princess. Nadine whimpered. The princess was gone. And gone were the blue butterflies as well.


End file.
